"The Memorables & Mentionables" 2006 Grub Round Up

The Good

[No-brainer place for brunch] Cedele Bakery Depot at Wheelock Place- I'm almost afraid to venture into the realm alone for fear of losing control and getting all BreadOut. Till wheat-allergy do us part.

[Been there, done that and still visiting] Crystal Jade La Mian- So been-there-done-that, you can’t consider yourself to be a Singaporean / PR unless you have participated in a National Day Parade crystal jade queue.

[Karma in Play]: Ichiban Boshi & Sushi Tei- What goes around comes around. You don’t have to read between the seaweed sheets to sense my undying loyalty for these conveyor belt chains…

[Tangible dedication] Shimabshi Soba- You simply cannot ignore Shimbashi’s dedication to fineness (actually it's just a window display away). Gawd, I wish I owned this place.

[Uno senso required] Somewhere in Toa Payoh behind the Singapore Press Holdings bulding- The service staff is curt, the hygiene standard questionable and the ambience non-existence but for seriously good cze char, I could learn to shut down the rest of my senses and focus on taste.

[Ching Chong Chomp] House of Hunan- Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan, Chong Qing, Jiang Nan and now Hunan, this elegant anomaly (i.e wallet-friendly) of the Tung Lok Group is the latest to join the “Somewhere In China” dartboard.

New Kids On The Block

E Sarn: Authentic Thai food in a small homely space... And to think it all started with a dream about the revered King Chulalongkorn and a plate of omelette. Not all dreams are made of fluff. (see sister restaurant: Thai Noodle House)

Auntie Kim's- I consider myself lucky to be living just a ten minute walk away from desr ol' Auntie Kim’s.

Pow Sing- A pitstop for familiar Nonya favorites.

New Kids in Couture

Sage Restaurant- An eye-opening experience, made memorable with the company of kindred spirits.

Ristorante Da Valentino- Secreted in an unexceptional surban, Valentine snubs the impregnable rule “location location location”. Three cheers for the service and a thumb -up for the food (one less thumb for the lackluster dessert). Let’s hope nobody’s on a visitor’s pass.

The Bad

Food Republic Thye Hong Hokkien Mee- "Join the queue, it must be good!" DAAAHHH!~!! Wrong! Singaporeans have a history of queuing up for questionable things (Remember Hello Kitty dolls?). Blame it on herd mentality and our MSMD (Merlion See Merlion Do) mentality. For hokkien mee aficionados, one mouthful is all it takes to pull a “merlion” (vomit).

Just Noodle- Just DON’T-Do It.

The Ugly

Razzies of this post include:

PS Café- “Perfect chill out spot” and “place to see and be seen’ are just a couple phrases that have been used to describe this eden. True, you won’t feel short-change on ambience but chow-wise (this is a f- blog after all), it is awfully pretentious and one feels short-change on value. The chaotic service didn’t help though we have to give them credit for looking better than Dude-Where’s-My-Duvet staff from Marmalade Pantry. Only for those who can’t afford their own cabbage patch African baby or tribe of Masai warriors for coolness’s sake.

Lemongrass Restaurant- there are certain things you wish you never had to find out of your own. Let somebody else try it! Let somebody else regret! Well, I did it so you better not follow in my footsteps

Hanabi- Joe Borg, European Commissioner for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs would have your heads for unnecessary slaughter of animals.

The Forgettable

Kuriya: Bankruptable yet not particularly impressive.

Secret Recipe: I guess the real secret is how they’ve survived until now.